Silly, Loud, Stupid BUT Pure Awesome

Rating: 8/10 (13 July 2013)

Ever since I was a kid I've loved monster movies. Films like Godzilla versus MechaGodzilla, the 7th Voyage of Sinbad and King Kong versus Godzilla got as much playtime for me as a kid as did Star Wars or Batman. B-movies have a certain charm to them, they usually have paper- thin human characters blended with whatever alien or monster element is providing the special-effects draw of the film.
Pacific Rim is the perfect blend of old-world B-Movie schlock and new world visual effects. The human characters are caricatures or thinly veiled stereotypes, their backstories are predictable and so are most of their actions in the film. You can guess what's coming a mile off. Just from the trailer you can guess the basics and yet, with as stupid as the plot is, when they get into the giant Mechs (Jagers) and start battling monsters the spectacle of it is jaw-dropping. You really feel the sheer weight and size of these things, both the Kaiju and the Jagers, which is no small feat considering how hard it is to convincingly portray mass and size with CGI. There's something about traditional model making that makes it easy to get a sense of weight and scale but here the visuals manage to show us, and more importantly let us feel, just how toweringly massive these behemoths truly are.
Even with a by-the-numbers plot I still found myself rooting for the Jagers every single time they faced a Kaiju. The adrenaline rush of seeing the two pilots move with the machine, all their will-power, all their memories, merged to fight this threat. Metal getting sheered, torn, battle-damage to the Jagers, monster bodies crashing through buildings.
When I was a kid there was a film called Robot Jox that used stop-motion for the giant mechs. With modern CGI we've come a long way. Rather than try to get gritty or grim or realistic the film stays true to its schlocky silly predecessors.
If this film had come out when I was twelve it would have changed my life forever. It's an awesome sight to behold that leaves you pumped. This is a film that admits what it is up front, if you've seen the trailer than you know what to expect. It is a homage that blends the plots of a thousand other monster movies into a perfect blend of pure visual cinematic awesome.
In short, it ain't perfect, but its the most entertaining film I've seen this summer. If giant monsters battling mechanized soldiers doesn't put you in a theater what are you seeing, a comedy? On the big-screen? For shame. Go see Pacific Rim!
PS. Portal fans, her voice IS in the final cut of the film!